Don't allow Asiatic black bears to be captured and tortured for their bile. Take action! Bear bile farming is an alarming practice taking place in China, whereby Asiatic black bears are captured and used to provide bile from their gall bladders. The bile is an found in popular ancient Chinese medicine. The bile extraction process is extremely painful for the bears, and is hardly ever performed in a sterile manner. In fact, about half of all bears caught for their bile end up dying from complications of the procedure. We need to end this inhumane act of torture immediately. Send a letter to the World Society for the Protection of Animals to support their efforts to abolish bear bile farming forever.

1. Bear bile does have medicinal uses but there are cruelty-free alternatives

Bear bile has been used in traditional Asian medicine for thousands of years. It contains high levels of ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) known to be useful for treating liver and gall bladder conditions. However, there are now many readily available herbal and synthetic alternatives with the same medicinal properties. Traditional medicine practitioners agree, nobody’s health will suffer due to a lack of bear bile. In the past bear bile would be obtained by hunting bears in the wild and killing them to remove their gall bladder. It would have been a particularly rare and prized ingredient at the time used sparingly for specific medical conditions. In the 1980s however, bear bile farming began to be practiced as a way of constantly extracting bile for the duration of a bear’s life. Today more than 12,000 bears are believed to be kept on bear bile farms in China and Vietnam. Moon bear Bluebelle endured this tiny cage for years

2. Extracting bile from bears is as cruel and painful as you would imagine

The extraction of bear bile from live bears causes unimaginable suffering and long term health problems for these physically and psychologically damaged animals. A number of techniques exist, all of which are particularly gruesome. While the techniques vary between Vietnam and China, each involves bears being kept in tiny cages. Extraction methods range from “free drip” where the bear suffers a hole in their gall bladder, to the insertion of permanent catheters. Crush cages and bears locked into metal jackets have now been made illegal in China – but are likely to still be used in poorer farms. Bears literally grow up in tiny cages to the point where their bodies have contorted to fit the bars. Most have few teeth left due to literally trying to chew their way out. In China some farms have breeding programmes, but also rely on these being added to by poaching bears from the wild. Many bears can be caged as cubs and never released, suffering up to 30 years of continuous torture by bile extraction. Most farmed bears however are starved, dehydrated and suffer from multiple diseases and malignant tumours that ultimately kill them

A 2011 poll by Animals Asia found that a staggering 87% of Chinese people interviewed disagree with the cruel practice of bear bile farming.

The medical community too is shunning bear bile farming, with thousands of pharmacies recently pledging never to stock bile products as part of Animals Asia’s Healing Without Harm programme. This year the owners of Nanning Bear Bile Farm asked us to take over and convert it into a sanctuary. They were in agreement that the industry must end – because, in their words, bear bile farming is both cruel and hopeless. Meanwhile Kai Bao, the biggest single buyer of bear bile, recently announced they were pursuing research into bear bile alternatives with government backing. The suggestion remains that the market is reducing

4. It’s still legal in China but not in Vietnam

Unfortunately, bear bile farming is still completely legal in China – albeit with regulations aimed at curbing the worst cruelty of the industry. Regulations that are circumvented or ignored time and again – so far, with no prosecutions being made. In Vietnam, bear bile farming has been technically illegal since 1992, but it wasn’t until 2005 that species-specific legislation was introduced banning the exploitation of these endangered animals. Sadly, bear bile farming persists in the country due to legal loopholes as well as the fact that demand still exists.

5. We won’t stop fighting until bear bile farming is ended for good

Since being set up in 1998 Animals Asia has continuously campaigned to end bear bile farming in China and Vietnam. Thanks to the staunch support of people all over the world, we have been able to take bear bile farming from a dark secret to an international outrage. We have rescued more than 500 bears in Vietnam and China from the cruelty of bear bile farms and are absolutely committed to ending this cruel trade. But we can’t do it alone. We need your help and the help of everyone you know to condemn this barbaric industry to the history books. So please, tell your friends, share this article and support our work. Together we can end the cruelty.

Ending the bear bile industry

We work in Asia to end cruelty to bears and the unnecessary bear bile industry and we won't stop till we've achieved it. The bear bile industry ; Bears in Asia are captured for their bile, which is extracted using cruel, painful procedures and sold as traditional medicine. These captive bears suffer in filthy and cramped conditions, often in cages no bigger than phone booths. But the bear bile industry is completely unnecessary – plentiful and inexpensive synthetic and herbal alternatives to bear bile are readily available. The bear bile industry causes intense, unjustified suffering to bears across Asia – and you help us put a stop to it

Needless cruelty to bears

Bear bile is extracted in intolerably cruel and inhumane ways, often by people with no veterinary qualifications and little concern for animal protection. Some bears face this cruelty throughout their lives. That can mean 20 years of torture – unless the bears succumb to infection, tumours or self-inflicted wounds. Bears in the bear bile industry often moan and rock due to extreme anxiety. Many have broken teeth from biting on the bars of their cages. Together, we can create lasting change to prevent the severe pain and psychological distress suffered by bears in the bear bile industry

Bear bile: our work

We are committed to ending the exploitation of bears in the bear bile industry, and to protect wild bears from a lifetime of suffering in captivity. Our work includes:

Joining with partners, including governments, global bodies, local partners and individuals, to stop bears being exploited and to create lasting changePromoting better welfare for captive bears, while we move to end the bear bile industry for goodSeeking laws, policies, monitoring and enforcement to ensure that captive bears are given space to move, provided with richer environments and are protected from all forms of bile extraction and exploitationRaising awareness of alternatives to bear bile, including herbal and synthetic products, which are readily available, affordable and effectiveWorking with local organisations to urge governments to live up to their international commitments to protect bears and other wild animals.

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With your support, we can stop bears being subjected to a lifetime of pain and distress in the bear bile industry; Learn about our work to end bear baiting